Options for GURPS Banestorm - 11 years later

[ericthered]

Originally Posted by sir_pudding

Mystics have very specific "internal" powers, they aren't spellcasters (unless they are also Mages), they also aren't necessarily clerics.

Ok, I think I see your point. Yeah, banestorm mystics are religious, but they are either outside or tangential to organized religions. Banestorm 'clerics' (meaning priests and other formal religious authorities) are frequently if not majority mundane, drawing any abilities from personal skill and social structures. Distinguishing between the two is important and in my opinion one of the better nuggets in the setting.

Yes, Clerics don't have divine powers, but divine powers exist (or are at least imitated).

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by ericthered

Yes, Clerics don't have divine powers, but divine powers exist (or are at least imitated).

Again, the existing mystical abilities are thematically subtle and mostly internal. The system of direct overt divine intervention and miracles presented in Divine Favor Isn't subtle and mostly external. This would be a major departure from the core premises of the setting.

[Jürgen Hubert]

Originally Posted by Anders

I think you gravely underestimate peoples' ability to rationalize things. Of course these mystics' "spells" come from the Devil.

Well, those of mystics of those other religions, at least.

[Anders]

Originally Posted by Jürgen Hubert

Well, those of mystics of those other religions, at least.

Nah, those of my own religion are even worse. They are heretics.

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by Jürgen Hubert

Well, those of mystics of those other religions, at least.

Orthodox Abrahamic authority has historically tended to have a rocky relationship with even cosectarian mysticism (e.g., Gnostics and Catholicism or Sufis and Sunnis).

[ericthered]

Originally Posted by sir_pudding

Again, the existing mystical abilities are thematically subtle and mostly internal. The system of direct overt divine intervention and miracles presented in Divine Favor Isn't subtle and mostly external. This would be a major departure from the core premises of the setting.

I've never gotten that vibe, but I'm not a banestorm expert. I'm looking at the list of mystic lenses. There is a slant towards internal and subtle, but its still gets blatant:

Damage resistance vs Fire
Insubstantial
Warp
Healing
Mind Probe

The others are more internal and subtle, but it appears no knowledgeable person on yrth doubts the existence of mystics. That said, some of the above are tagged as "rare".

[LoneWolf23k]

Adding actual Demons, as in the beings from GURPS Locations: Hellsgate, would further complicate matters, especially if the demons themselves have no opinion on mortal religions, but will eagerly taunt mortal worshippers on their beliefs.

And Hellsgate would make sense on Yrth. Put it somewhere in the Great Desert, Djinn lands or Orclands, say it's just as trapped by Yrth's sargasso effect as other dimensional travelers, and make it the source of all of Ytarria's Summoned Demons.

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by ericthered

The others are more internal and subtle, but it appears no knowledgeable person on yrth doubts the existence of mystics.

There's hardly consensus that the source of these powers is actually divine either, certainly this is presented as canonically doubtful in GURPS Banestorm. Using Divine Favor would be a much more definite position on existence of God; which for a setting that is very deliberately agnostic is inappropriate.

Originally Posted by LoneWolf23k

Adding actual Demons, as in the beings from GURPS Locations: Hellsgate, would further complicate matters, especially if the demons themselves have no opinion on mortal religions, but will eagerly taunt mortal worshippers on their beliefs.

Yrth has demons, but it isn't clear that these beings at all imply any specific cosmology. Especially since they lie.

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by sir_pudding

Yrth has demons, but it isn't clear that these beings at all imply any specific cosmology. Especially since they lie.

Actually, the "Hell" of Yrth demons is theorized to be a pocket dimension specifically linked to Yrth to get around that whole "Quantum Sargasso" thing.

[simply Nathan]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

Actually, the "Hell" of Yrth demons is theorized to be a pocket dimension specifically linked to Yrth to get around that whole "Quantum Sargasso" thing.

Demons can cheat anyway and their Hell might be connected to those of some other worlds...

Like maybe anywhere that rolling 6-6-6 on the Critical Spell Failure table defaults to "summon a demon" instead of flavored elsewise?